Author: Jacqueline Morris

The second annual Trinidad and Tobago Internet Governance Forum, TTIGF 2018 will be held on Friday 26th January, 2018 at the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce, with online participation available for those unable to attend at the venue.

The theme this year, in keeping with the International Internet Governance Forum, is “Shape Your Digital Future”. The sessions at the 2018 TTIGF will focus on Digital Financial Services, Online Gender Activism and Blockchain. These topics were chosen from suggestions made by the local community.

Jacqueline is a University Lecturer, Activist, MasWoman, FlagWoman, and Internet Governance expert.

She sits on the Board of the TTMAG as the representative of the University of Trinidad and Tobago, and also sits as a Director on the Board of the National ICT Company of Trinidad and Tobago (iGovTT).

She is a lecturer at the University of Trinidad and Tobago, at the Centre for Education Programmes. She has also lectured in Process Engineering. Her current research interests focus on Education Technology, and flipped, blended and online learning.

She was an appointed member of ICANN ‘s At Large Advisory Committee from 2005 to 2007, and was Chair of that committee in 2007. She has held several other leadership positions in ICANN. She was a foundation member of the WSIS Gender Caucus and appointed as a member of the UN’s Working Group of Experts on Internet Governance. She has also worked for Media 21 Limited – a multimedia production and live video projection firm. Her main area of expertise was IP based video projects, such as digital signage and livestreaming. She also directed live concert video productions, and has worked with names like John Legend, Rihanna, Lionel Richie, NeYo, Beenie Man, Shakira, Diana Ross, and Machel Montano.

Sue Ann is a Lecturer at the Institute for Gender and Development Studies, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus. She is a graduate of the University of the West Indies, holding a BA in Media and Communication Studies with Political Science, MA Communication Studies, and PhD Interdisciplinary Gender Studies. Her research areas are interpersonal interaction, human communication conflict, social media use and its implications, gender and ethnic identities, beauty and body image, and Carnival studies. She is dedicated to gender awareness and sensitivity training through face-to- face sessions and mass media outreach.

Ajmal graduated in Computer Systems Engineering (Beng) from City University, London. Joined Goldman Sachs in their Enterprise Technology division being responsible for real time business critical trading systems.

Ajmal has been responsible for the technology in Green Dot. He specialises in all facets of digital wireless communications and signal processing, both low and high powered digital RF transmission and interference management. Ajmal has also implemented business process mapping and automation.

He has been part of a number of technical and other working committees with TATT, he has worked with the Electrical Department of UWI and regularly gives presentations at regional telecom conferences. He has very strong legal and regulatory appreciation. Currently hold the Vice Chair for TTIXP as well as the Director of Strategy and Growth for Green Dot across the Caribbean. He is also a member of the Caribbean Corporate Governance Institute.

There is increasing momentum and hype about bitcoin and other crypto-currencies. Some consider them to be a scam, while others believe that they will change the world as we know it. What no one is disputing is that the technology that underpins these crypto-currencies, that is, blockchain, or distributed ledger technology, is an extremely important technology for the future, with many applications that are not as well-discussed as the crypto-currency application.

The panel will discuss how important blockchain may be, its applications, potentials and its limits. Panelists will discuss the potential impact, both positive and negative, on our society as a whole.

Further Explanation – In this context, the term “digital channels” refers to the internet, mobile phones (both smartphones and digital feature phones), ATMs, POS terminals, NFC-enabled devices, chips, electronically enabled cards, biometric devices, tablets, phablets and any other digital system. DFS models usually employ agents and the networks of other third-party intermediaries to improve accessibility and lower the overall service delivery cost.

The panel will discuss the current state of play in Trinidad and Tobago, what other services can be provided and how DFS can facilitate digital inclusion.

Hashtag activism has helped to propel women’s rights to the forefront of political agendas, bringing attention to issues often under-reported by mainstream media. From 2014 in Nigeria, with the #bringbackourgirls campaign, to 2017’s #metoo, social media has helped women to share experiences of sexual violence, harassment and more, and has kept international attention focused on events that have slipped off the news agenda. In general, the extent to which online engagement translates into policy change or practical action remains unclear.

However, in the Caribbean, some recent campaigns have moved beyond hashtags and have led to actual policy change and practical action.

Attillah Springer will tell us about her experiences with some of these campaigns, from SaySomething, a campaign with led to the resignation of the Mayor of Port of Spain, to the campaign to end child marriage, and the #leaveshealone Carnival campaign.

Women’s issues have not been the only ones that have benefited from the use of social media campaigns. Prior to broad deployment of the Internet, life, especially life as an LGBT individual, was mostly limited by geography. The Internet and the subsequent rise of social media have allowed LGBT people to bridge disparate geographies in ways that no previous technologies permitted. The Internet has also permitted LGBT people to safely and discreetly find partners and learn that they are not alone, regardless of where they live, from the comfort and security of their own home. In the Caribbean, social media and the Internet has allowed everyone to connect with the struggles of LGBTQI+ people as they fight for their human rights.

Jason Jones is one of those activists who is currently fighting for his human rights as a Gay man in the Courts of Trinidad and Tobago. He will discuss his use of the Internet to find support and supporters for his cause, as well as to assist in creating communities for young LGBTQI+ persons and their families.

None of these actions and policy changes would have occurred without the use of the Internet and social media. However, the Internet and social media, despite, or maybe because of the ease of access and the ability to tell one’s stories (often anonymously), can be difficult to use as a research tool. Questions of identity and veracity of information persist. How can we know our reach and our power?

Ian Royer, social media expert, will explain the uses and reach of social media in Trinidad and Tobago and the wider Caribbean, and how our use of social media differs from that in other cultures.

Dr. Sue Ann Barratt of the Institute for Gender and Development Studies at the UWI, will discuss how online spaces can be used to expand citizen participation, education, and empowerment. This, of course, will be informed by a framework that takes gender justice as crucial to such participation, education, and empowerment

The discussion will be open and wide-ranging, with input from in-person and remote attendees. It will take the form of a Q and A /interview with the panelists. There will be no “presentations” as such.